One Job at a Time
by Umabaka
Summary: Lucy needs rent money and unfortunately Gray's the only one available. How does he get himself into these messes? A love story told through a series of interconnected drabbles and oneshots. Other couples: Laxus/Mira, Jellal/Erza. May add others.
1. Chapter 1: Coercion

**Disclaimer:** I own Fairy Tail… pysch… I don't own it

**Chapter 1: Coercion**

"Please, Gray"

"No."

"Please, I _really, really _need the money" Lucy continued to plead, her hands clasped in front of her. As if that would change his mind. Pssh, yeah right.

"No. Take Natsu."

"I can't he's on a job with Happy, Charle, and Wendy, so _please _go on this job with me."

"No. I have better things to do."

"Pretty please with a cherry on top?"

"The answer is – _and will always be –_ NO." there was a note of finality in his tone. Lucy dropped her hands.

"I'm sorry, Gray, I didn't want to have to do this. If you don't take this job with me I will be forced to tell Natsu about _that._"

"…" he froze, his mind trying to remember what she was referring too. SHIT! She couldn't be talking about that time, right? "You wouldn't…" his sentence trailed off. Lucy's expression was grim, but her eyes sparkled with triumph.

"No, No, _No! _You can't tell him_ that_!He'd never let me live that down!" He jumped up, his face panicked and his clothes nowhere in sight.

"Wah! Gray put your clothes back on!" now it was Lucy's turn to panic. He paid her no mind, too caught up in his own alarm.

"At least pick a different job." he entreated. It was his last chance. He couldn't afford to ignore her request any longer.

"I'm sorry, but this is the only job left with a reward large enough to cover my rent" she actually sounded a little regretful, but that didn't last long. She knew she had him, and so her mind turned to the job, making her eyes sparkle. He deflated, resigned to his humiliating fate.


	2. Chapter 2: Acceptance

**Chapter 2: Acceptance**

"Oh stop pouting. It's not that bad."

"Yes it is. It's a damn _beauty pageant_." He pronounced the last two words with marked distaste.

"Technically, it's a scholarship program. For guilds." She replied trying to placate him.

"That's the same thing!" he could tell she was starting to feel guilty. Good. The last thing he wanted to do at that moment was participate in a … beauty pageant. Ugh! He could barely stand to think about it. And when Natsu found out... maybe he should have taken his chances with _that._

"Come on, Gray, please don't be so mad." She smiled a bright sunny smile. Great. How is he supposed to stay mad when she smiles like that? Besides it wasn't in his nature to hold grudges for too long. He sighed and Lucy correctly interpreted it as a sign of acceptance. "If it helps, Juvia will kill me when she finds out I participated in a pageant with you." She joked.

He smirked at her. That might have helped. A little.

**A/N: I couldn't resist the allusion to Miss Congeniality :)**

**dianaloveanime: thank you so much for reviewing! As far as "that" goes, you might find out later. Maybe.**

**P.S. Reviews make me happy... :)**


	3. Chapter 3: Arrival

**Chapter 3: Arrival**

When they finally arrived, the streets were packed with people.

"There must be more going on than just a beauty pageant" he mused.

"Aye. There's all kinds of local arts and crafts stands. I hear the pageant's a pretty big event in this city, so local artisans come here to sell their wares. I'm hoping to check some of them out if we have time."

"Hm" Gray mumbled non-committedly.

"I heard the food's supposed to be really good here, too."

"Hm"

"Gray are you even listening to me?"

"Hm"

She turned to face him, only to see his gaze focused on something to his left.

Lucy sighed, annoyed at his disinterest, but she didn't press the issue. An entire day shopping tomorrow for costumes for the pageant would be punishment enough. "Come on Gray we'd better go check in and get our rom keys."

**A/N: Sorry it took a while, but I've been busy with school work and I just got done scheduling my classes for next year :P** **Despite that, I'll try to post **_**at least**_** 2 or 3 chapters a week.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed. Please keep them coming!**

**dianaloveanime: Yay! I'm so glad you liked it, but you know she's gonna find out :) In all honest though, I really like Juvia (especially after the Battle of Fairy Tail). I just don't like her with Gray, and I find her fantasies and her creepy stalker routine annoying. **

**CuTe-and-BeAuTiFull: Haha yeah although Gray's not excited about it at all :) Sorry it's so short again, but I'm trying to keep the chapters pretty short because of the type of story I'm writing. But don't worry, I'm working on the next couple chapters right now, so hopefully I'll be able post them soon.**

**Guest: I'm so glad you like it so far! It's nice to know my story's enjoyed. I'll try not to be two bad about updating, especially if I get reviews *hint, hint*.**


	4. Chapter 4: Registration

**Chapter 4: Registration**

"Hello, are you here to register for the partner pageant?"

"Aye, I'm Lucy Heartphilia and this is my partner Gray Fullbuster" she answered brightly.

The lady at the desk smiled "Thank you . Your room will be room 203 at the Dandy Lion Inn. Please fill out these forms and hand them in to the people at the next desk over."

Gray reached for the keys so Lucy took the papers from the woman's hand. She glanced at the sections. They were pretty standard issue forms: name, partner's name, address, guild, magic. But they also asked about things like interests and hobbies. Lucy shrugged before turning to give him his sheets to fill out.

"Gray, here's your…" her voice trailed off when she saw who he was staring at.

"Lyon, what are you doing here?!" Gray yelled angrily.

**A/N: Well now we know what caught his attention in the last chapter ¬ˬ¬ I know I'm evil for leaving a cliffhanger. Also, I apologize for the pathetic attempt at a pun. **

**On another note this is supposed to take place sometime after the dragon invasion, so I'm sure most people won't recognize the name Heartphilia. If they did, they would probably know that their fortune is gone, so I don't think Lucy would be too worried about the effect her name could possibly have on the voting.**

**Please (or as Lucy would say – pretty please with a cherry on top) Review!**


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